Sue Lani Madsen comments on current events, context, community, country living and conservative values, and tries not to get carried away by alliteration. She is an architect, rancher, writer and volunteer firefighter/EMT from eastern Washington.

Whose Land Is It Anyway?

This past week my husband and I celebrated our wedding anniversary by taking a long walk followed by a leisurely dinner. Since we live in the country, we decided on a change of scenery. We drove into Spokane with a copy of the Spokane Sculpture Walk map and explored parts of the Centennial Trail and Riverfront Park we had never seen before. We even spotted a beaver swimming across the Spokane River. Trees, vistas, wildlife – it was a beautiful afternoon hike, followed by a delicious dinner at a local riverside restaurant.

We did think perhaps the Centennial Trail would be nicer if the businesses along the north side of the river had to move back to give it more space. The city should definitely be investing more money in upkeep in the park. The condos along the south riverbank in the University District would be more picturesque if there were rules about what people could put on their balconies. And maybe a few more rules about . . .

“Wait a minute,” average Spokane Joe says, “Our existing economic base is important, we need those compromises on riparian setbacks. You can’t tell us how to spend our tax money, and our private property owners get to decide how they use their property. We’ll take care of our own community, thank you very much.”

Where rivers flow through working landscapes, there will always be tradeoffs to support those working landscapes. The Spokane River provides power as well as esthetic beauty and recreational opportunities as part of an urban working landscape. I don’t live there, and I don’t get to tell residents what’s best for their community.

The rivers and creeks of the countryside are part of working agricultural landscapes. Riparian setbacks imposed from outside are not welcome, especially when they put local economies in jeopardy. An urban river is different than a rural river. Each has its own character, beauty and place in the community. Local solutions provide the best balance. If you don’t live in my watershed, you can give advice but we’ll decide what’s best for our community.